Sunday, 29 March 2015

Life is precious, yet so very fragile. We see it on the news, we
read it in the papers, we feel it every time we think about our loved ones, we
even notice it when growing plants.

Each year I take the time to grow a few herbs and vegetables. The process starts by preparing the soil, making sure it is thoroughly dug over and weed free. Then I plant seeds in discarded eggshells
and nurture them until the seedlings appear. After a few days or weeks, the shoots poke up from the soil and the leaves begin to open. The slightest wisp of breeze coming through the window sending the seedling into quiver like a nervous child. Eventually the day comes where it is time to release the
seedling into the big outside world to face the harsh elements of the sun, wind and rain, into the rich fertile soil of the vegetable patch.

I prepare a small hole in the soil, slightly crack the eggshell and place it into the hole, taking care not to damage the seedling. Soon it is planted, once standing proud on the kitchen windowsill and now looking dwarfed and vulnerable in this big patch of garden. The days and weeks go by. Each morning, when I wake up, I peer out of my bedroom window, with eyes still full of sleep, to see how much further it has grown. Each day I convince myself that it is taller than the day before. Spring has sprung, summer has shone its last hot sun and the alchemy of the autumn has transformed many a forest from lush green to warm gold. The evening shadows are long and my little seedling is now a tall, proud and elegant looking plant, towering above my shoulders and now requiring a cane to keep itself supported. Its main body laden with fine cobs or corn, ripe and ready for picking. I pull off the first cob of the season. This plant has done well. I wrap the cob in foil with some butter and place it in the oven. Before long I can smell the juices and know that a feast awaits me. I peel back the foil and take the first bite! The best bite, no other bite can surpass that of the very first. And to think, this all came from the planting of that little seed in the discarded eggshell in early spring....

Life is precious, life is fragile, and we must respect, value and nurture it. Happy Spring Time, or whatever season you are moving in to, in your part of the world.

Sunday, 20 January 2013

It is a bit of a shame, but snow around my area is a rarity nowadays. We only get a splattering maybe once every couple of years. So, imagine my delight when I opened my blinds on Friday morning to discover that everything was white outside. I have to confess that the child in me comes out when it snows.
After work, I grabbed my camera and went exploring with a friend. It was a lovely day with a perfectly crisp chill in the air. The kind of crisp air to make your nose go cold and your eyes water, but still feeling cosily warm underneath several layers of clothing.
It would be so unfair of me to experience such an afternoon without sharing at least a handful of photographs with you...

My friend Faraz making his way up the snow covered road

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A day off school provides a perfect excuse to go sledging.

An amazing moment captured when a flock of swans took off over the frozen lake

Saturday, 19 January 2013

I am writing a slightly unusual post now. However, as I have an addiction for almost a year now, I think I need to be brave, stand up and announce it. Well here goes..... (Graham stands up, takes a deep breath, his bottom lip holding a slight quiver of apprehension).

I, Graham Ettridge, from the rural county of Wiltshire in England, have been addicted to.....

....the music from Schiller's album "Desire" for a year now.

Yes, I know, how could I abandon all the thousands of other tracks on my Ipod????? How could I be so cold as to walk away from "Queen", "Moby", "Cat Power", "Sia", "Stereophonics", and all the other talented artists, imprisoned in the Ipod, frozen out of the play selection? How could these dark winter evenings go past without at least a sprinkling of "Beethoven", "Mozart" or "Tchaikovsky"? Not even the silky powerballad voice "Adelle" has managed to break through to my playlist, even though I did tie myself to the chair and switch on the radio to hear the full version of "Skyfall".

So I am now going to formally declare that I am going to stop listening to Schiller from now on. No more, finished, nada, finito!!!!

Well, maybe just one more track....

Thats it now! No more, after this one last final one....

Well, it would be wrong to stop listening to Schiller without experiencing a concert just one more time, wouldn't it?????......

Well, maybe it is all too much for me to give up at the moment. Perhaps I should start this next week, or the week after, or the week after that..............................

Graham's Photobook....Through The Eyes Of A Dreamer

Who is Graham Ettridge?

Graham Ettridge is an Englishman with a curious and wandering soul. Born in Shakespeare’s birthplace town of Stratford Upon Avon in England during the early 1970’s, Graham then grew up in the wonderful county of Wiltshire in England. From here, he has developed a true passion for travel and photography.

The Author's Statement

“It all started with “Oh my goodness! I’m in my late 20’s, I’m single and I have done nothing with my life”. The realisation that hit me like a freight train one spring morning in 2002. My period of procrastination had to come to an end. So, whilst supping a beer in my local pub with a friend, we decided to go on an adventure – and within a few days had arranged a trek through the Sinai desert in Egypt – That’s how it started, and as any avid traveller will know, once you catch the travel bug it never goes away, it just gets stronger. Each time you cross one destination off the top of your list, you add another two to the bottom. The desire to experience new cultures; the want to meet new people; the need to learn more about yourself….it’s all just a footstep away.

“My camera has provided good company during my travels, enabling me to capture some of the special moments that I have experienced. Part of my passion with photography is to take an unusual view of the things around me. To open my eyes wider and to absorb the wonders of nature, architecture, people and objects that very often we take for granted.

“I am a novice photographer, but have an ambition to develop and enhance my technique whilst still trying to hold on to my raw appreciation of life.”